Splicing apparatus for continuously advancing webs



Nov. 3, 1970 J. H. DELAPLAINE ETA!- 3,537,939

SPLICING APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY ADVANCING WEBS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 1, 1967 mm mm INVENTORS .m Y O F- l N M R IO O 80 T DS nh J M a? NOV. 3, 1970 J, H, DELAPLAINE ETAL 3,537,939

SPLICING APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY ADVANCING WEBS Filed May '1. 1967 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 L I T Fig. 4

- INVENTORS John H. Deloploine Q l06' Flg. 6 BY Joseph F. Scott ATTORNEY United States Patent O 3,537,939 SPLICING APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY ADVANCING WEBS John H. Delaplaine, Novato, Calif., and Joseph F. Scott,

Cherry Hill, N.J., assignors to National Gypsum Company, Buffalo, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed May 1, 1967, Ser. No. 635,201 Int. Cl. B65l 19/08, 19/16 U.S. Cl. 1565 04 9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This disclosure sets forth preferred embodiments of an improvement in splicing the lead end of a Web, as of paper, to the tail end of a previous web, to provide a continuously advancing web. A free rolling roller is disposed over the advancing previous web. The lead end of a new web is fed between the free rolling roller and the advancing previous web, and up and over the roller, with the bottom side of the new lead end loosely held face-up. Adhesive is applied to this bottom side. At the proper instant the free rolling roller is caused to move substantially faster than the speed of the previous web along the direction of the advancing previous web, lazing down, and adhering the new lead end to the old tail end.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Many manufacturing processes involve continuously feeding a sheet material, such as paper, wherein successive rolls of paper are used, and as one roll becomes used up the lead end of a new roll of paper is spliced to the tail end of an old roll. In the type of splice here contemplated, adhesive material is used and a short length of the two respective ends are overlapped, and, with the adhesive, form a lapped joint.

A specific example of the prior art is the process commonly employed in the manufacture of gypsum board, wherein there is formed a continuous endless core of settable gypsum, between two opposed endless paper liners. To supply the two endless paper liners to the gypsum board manufacturing process, successive rolls of liner paper of about four foot width and 20,000 foot length, are spliced together. This has been accomplished in the past by having the lead end of a new roll of paper disposed over the advancing web of paper of the previous roll, with the lead end folded back on itself. A crew of four men were normally required to ca ry out the splicing operation.

Just prior to the old roll being all used up, a liquid adhesive was brushed onto a three foot by two foot area of the folded back portion of the new lead end, and the lead end was unfolded but held above and away from the paper of the old roll. As soon as the four men saw the tail end about to leave the old roll, the four men all grasped the new lead end firmly, and laid it onto the top side of the advancing web of the old roll. Considerable care was required to make sure the edges were even, or otherwise problems would be created in the board manufacturing process. This task of making the edges even had to be accomplished as the old paper was being rapidly advanced toward the continuous board making process.

'As quickly as possible, the four men then had to press the two papers together throughout the area of the adhesive. This was accomplished by providing a conveyor belt below the area where the task of splicing was accomplished, and by slapping hands onto the top face of the lead end, pressing the lead end, adhesive and tail end tightly together against the conveyor belt therebelow. As soon as the spliced area traveled beyond the conveyor 3,537,939 Patented Nov. 3, 1970 belt section, the men had to reach underneath the moving web and tear off the useless end portion of the tail end, trailing behind the splice portion.

This prior method required an undescribably high number of men present during the splicing. It involved manual placement of the lead end, relative to the tail end, under strictly limited time conditions, with the inherent potential of human error. It required men to work under hurried, moving conditions, which are conductive to accidents. It required a considerable number of men for a task which took only seconds and occurred only every several hours.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION The present invention involves providing a novel apparatus and a novel method of splicing the lead end of a new elongate web to the tail end of a previous similar elongate web. The invention contemplates positioning the new lead end relative to mechanical means adapted to rapidly unfold and press an area of the lead end, having adhesive thereon, throughout the area of the adhesive, which lead end will then move with the tail end, and become firmly adhered thereto by the adhesive. The mechanical means of the invention will preferably consist of a free-rolling cylindrical roller, extending the width of the web, movable in the direction of the movement of the Webs, at a speed greater than the speed of the Webs, in pressing engagement with the webs. The invention further includes providing a novel apparatus and method for holding the web lead end, which in combination with the means for pressing the lead end permit setting up the lead end, the adhesive, the holding means and the pressing means, at any time during the running of a roll of the web material, whereby on completion of the roll, the splicing operation can be carried out completely automatically.

DRAWINGS The invention will be more readily apparent when considered in relation to the preferred embodiments as set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a side view of the forming end of a gypsum board manufacturing facility including apparatus for splicing together successive rolls of paper, in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of the web splicing apparatus of the invention.

FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 are enlarged diagrammatic side views of the splicing portion of FIG. 1, shown in progressive steps throughout a splicing operation, in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a modified embodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION.PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown, diagrammatically, the starting or forming end of a gypsum board plant including a bottom forming conveyor 20 supported on an end roller 22 and intermediate rollers 24, and a main top forming roll 26. Between the forming conveyor 20 and the forming roll 26 there is continuously fed a bottom web 30 of paper, an aqueous slurry of settable gypsum 32 and a top web 34 of paper. The gypsum is continuously fed between the two advancing webs of paper from a mixer 36 which deposits one or more streams 38 of the slurry on the bottom paper web 30.

The present invention is directed to means for providing paper liner or the like as a continuous web and is shown, by way of example, in the above described gypsum board manufacturing process. Two paper liner webs 30, 34 are continuously fed into the above gypsum board machine,

from two separate sources, each of which may embody the invention, however, for simplicity, only the bottom liner supply system 40 is shown, it being understood that the supply for the top web 34 would be constructed similarly thereto.

The bottom liner supply system 40 includes the paper roll support 42 and the novel web splicer 44. The paper roll support 42 includes means for supporting two or more rolls 46 of paper, suitably for rotation of the rolls and removal of the paper 30 therefrom. Support 42 also permits of movement of a rotating roll from a back position 48 thereon to a forward position 50, such as by an axle 52 extending through a hollow core 54 of each roll 46, with the two ends of axle 52 being supported and rollable along side support tracks 56.

As the end of the paper web 30 from the roll 46 in the forward position 50 is about to be used, the beginning of the paper web 30 from another roll 46 in the back position 48 becomes spliced to the said end whereby a continuous web 30 is fed to the gypsum board machine, the splicing thereof being discussed further below. After the splicing and the start of the supplying of the paper web from the new roll 46 in the back position 48, the axle 52 and the empty core 54 which are in the forward position are removed from the forward position, the roll in the back position 48 is moved, while still feeding paper, to the forward position 50, and another new roll 46 is then placed in the back position 48 for another splicing, etc.

The splicer 44 includes a horizontal splicing board 60 over which the continuous web 30' passes. Splicing board 60 is a smooth faced board slightly wider than paper web 30, which with most gypsum board will be about four feet wide. The splicing board 60 is several feet long as will be understood from the operation of the splicer. Splicing board 60, could alternatively consist of, or additionally include, firmly supported conveyor belting, not shown, moving with the paper web 30.

A freely rotatable pressing roll 62 is mounted for movement, along the top of the splicing board 60, see FIG. 2, with means for moving it at a speed substantially greater than the speed of the advancing continuous web 30. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, roll 62 is mounted on a shaft 64, the ends of which are mounted in bearing supports 66. Each bearing support 66 is affixed to an endless chain 68, the top reach of which is parallel to and above the side edges of splicing board 60. Chains 68 are each mounted on a pair of sprocket wheels 70' mounted beyond the ends of the splicing board 60, with drive means 72 attached to the sprocket wheels atone end, adapted to provide reciprocatory movement to the roll 62, along the splicing table 60.

Drive means 72 consists of an endless chain 74 engaging a sprocket wheel 76 adapted to rotate an adjacent sprocket wheel 70 when sprocket wheel '76 is rotated, whereby chain 74 drives chains 68. By providing a sprocket wheel 76 which is substantially smaller than sprocket wheel 70, which is driven by it, chains 68 move proportionately farther than chain '74, when so driven.

Chain 74 has one link thereof affixed to the outer end of a piston rod 78 of an air cylinder 80, whereby actuation of the air cylinder in one direction or the other causes the piston rod 78 to advance or retract and, accordingly, causes the pressing r011 62 to be rolled along the length of the splicing board 60' in one direction or the other.

A high pressure air supply control lever 82 directs air, under pressure, to one end or the other, alternatively, of air cylinder 80, when manually shifted from one to the other of the levers two alternative positions, thus causing the pressing roll 62 to roll on splicing board 60 from left to right performing a splicing of two webs, or alternatively causing pressing roll 62 to roll back from right to left to return it to a starting position.

Control lever 82 further includes an electrical switch 84 which is activated when the lever is shifted to cause the pressing roll to perform a splicing. Activation of switch 84 causes a severance of any excess of paper of the Old roll by activating a pair of solenoids 86, retracting a pair of solenoid pins 88 which are disposed at each side of the paper web and which support a weighted cutting wire 90, extending over and across the old paper web, until dropped by the retraction of the solenoid pins 88. The weighted cutting wire 90 has one end 92 fixed just below the one edge of the old paper web. The other wire end 94 supports a cylindrical weight 96- vertically moyable within a cylindrical casing 98.

Located above the splicing board 60 and pressing roll 62, adjacent the roll 62 left end or the starting end of travel is a fixed horizontally disposed gluing table 100 including means, such as a spring clip 102., for holding thereon the end of a paper web of the width of the splicing board 60 and roll 62.

FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 show progressively the action of the pressing roll 62, the end of an old paper web 30a and the beginning of a new web 30b, relative to the splicing board 60 and the gluing table 100, during a splicing operation.

At the start of a splicing operation, FIG. 3, roll 62 is disposed, at rest, with its bottom surface to the left of the starting edge of the splicing board 60. Old paper web 30a is traveling left to right across splicing board 60. A beginning end of a new paper web 30b is disposed between the old web 30a and the pressing roll 62, extending around about half the circumference of roll 62, terminating with what is normally the bottom face of the paper directed upwardly atop the gluing table 100. Spring clips 102 hold the new paper web end onto the gluing table 100 as an adhesive 104 is applied to the face directed upwardly thereon. In the preferred embodiment, a four inch wide strip of pressure sensitive tape, with adhesive on both faces, is applied across substantially the full width of the leading edge of the new paper web 30b.

Immediately after the splicing action is started, FIG. 4, the pressing roll 62 is moved to the right at a velocity substantially greater than the velocity of web 30a, rolling freely along the top of the splicing board 60 with both old web 30a and new web 30b between the roll 62 and the splicing board 60. This movement of roll 62 pulls the new paper web end out of the grasp of the spring clip 102 and off of the gluing table 100. The freely rotating pressing roll 62 holds the new pa er web 3017 tightly against the old web 30a and causes the new web to move to the right with the old web, rapidly coming to an equal speed with old web 30a.

As the splicing action is completed, FIG. 4 to FIG. 5, the pressing roll 62 moves to the right end of the splicing board 60, pressing the entire end portion of new Web 3% onto the top face of the old web 30a, pressing the adhesive 104 therebetween and afiixing the two webs together, completing the splice. As seen in FIG. 5, the end of web 30a, which has been produced by cutting wire 90, follows shortly behind the location of the adhesive 104.

In FIG. 6, a modified form of splicer 44' is shown, wherein a pressing roll 62' is mounted on two endless chains 68, which are mounted on two pairs of sprocket wheels 70, all of which assembly is disposed above the splicing board 60'. Instead of a reciprocatory movement, pressing roll 62 is carried completely around the periphery of chains 68', in each splicing action, the splicing occurring during the movement of the pressing roll 62 along the underside of the path of the chain, with the pressing roll rotating freely and riding along the top of the splicing board 60, with the paper webs 30a and 30b between the pressing roll 62 and the splicing board 60. The drive means 72 includes a chain 74 driven through a lower drive sprocket 106' by a suitable single direction rotation motor or equivalent means, not shown.

In the embodiment of FIG. 6, the pressing roll 62' would stop only at the single position shown, at the left end of the upper path of the roll, and, while in this position, the new web 30b is disposed around roll 62'. The end of new web 30b is disposed, bottom face up, on the gluing table 100, held thereon, as another example, by an ice pick 108', from which it can subsequently be torn loose, for splicing. The gluing table in this embodiment is pierceable by an ice pick, as for example a soft wood. The strip of adhesive 104 is disposed on the upwardly disposed paper bottom face.

The splicer 44' splicing action is started by a movement of the pressing roll downwardly around the left end of the chains 68', to then advance to the right across the splicing board 60', performing the splicing similar to the steps shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5. Pressing roll 62', after completion of the splicing, continues to travel upwardly around the right end of the chains 68 and back to the stopping position shown.

It will be seen that by means of the apparatus described, a new web can be prepared for splicing by one man, at any time during the approximately two hours of running a previous roll of paper web, and at the time of splicing, no assistance is needed in making the splice. By the further addition of means for detecting the approaching end of an old web, the activation of the splicer could be made automatic, requiring no one to be present during the splicing.

Having completed a detailed disclosure of the preferred embodiments of our invention, so that others may practice the same, we contemplate that variations may be made without departing from the essence of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a machine in which a plurality of successive Webs are drawn continuously through the machine during operation, a web splicer comprising a firm, substantially flat splicing surface over which the continuous webs are drawn, pressing means comprising a freely rotatable cylindrical roller above said splicing surface movable along said splicing surface in the direction of movement of said web, drive means at each side of said splicing surface for moving said pressing means parallel to the movement of said web at a velocity substantially greater than the velocity of said web, two opposed ends of said roller mounted in said drive means for rolling movement of said roller along said splicing surface and means for removably holding the leading end of a new web with the web bottom face directed upwardly, whereon adhesive material is disposed, while said new web extends therefrom to in front of and between the bottom of said pressing means and the top of a prior moving web, whereby movement of said pressing means presses the new web bottom face, with adhesive, onto the top of said prior moving web.

2. In the machine of claim 1, a splicing surface comprising a fixed, smooth surfaced board over which said webs are continuously slid.

3. In the machine of claim '1, a splicing surface comprising a conveyor belt movable with said webs.

4. The machine of claim 1 wherein said drive means at each side of said splicing surface each consists of a re spective chain drive mounted for movement parallel to the movement of said web.

5. In the machine of claim 4, reciprocatory drive means, for advancing said chain and said pressing means in the direction of movement of said web during a splicing operation and for returning said chain and pressing means to a starting position on completion of a splicing operation.

6. In the machine of claim 4, single direction drive means for advancing said chain and said pressing means in the direction of movement of said web during a splicing operation, and for moving said pressing means back to a starting position with a continuation of movement of said chain in its initial direction of movement.

7. In the machine of claim 1, means for removably holding the leading end of a new web comprising a readily accessible flat table disposed adjacent the top side of said pressing means, whereon adhesive can be readily applied to the web end bottom face.

8. In the machine of claim 7, a spring clamp on the edge of said flat table for holding a web end in easily removable condition.

9. In the machine of claim 7, a flat table of readily pierceable material whereby said web is loosely held by pointed means piercing said table.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,724,225 8/1929 Scott 242-58.4 2,606,136 8/1952 Garrett et al. 156--504 2,745,464 5/ 1956 Auerbacher et al. 156-504 3,227,594 1/ 1966 Ryan 242-58.4

BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner D. A. HART, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 24258.4 

